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Police-plank
* We need a police force of heart and conscience. Otherwise, we'll have a police force of brute strength and massive numbers. * No external police force can be effective, unless it is so large and pervasive that it destroys the rights government is meant to secure. * The way to prosperity is to focus on individual freedoms and responsibilities of both the police force as well as the citizens. * Putting the curfew center into the former Zone 4 police station, as desired by Mayor Murphy, was a terrible idea. It never came to pass, thankfully. * Having a curfew center at all is a bad idea. I would be against any such notion where the police can pick up kids off the streets and put them into a kiddie jail because it is past someone's bed time. * I have no problems with the detention and arrest of any kids or adults who are causing damages in the neighborhoods, regardless of the time of day or night. If somone is openly drunk, noisy, vulgar, giving threats, or spilling bodily fluids on public or private property -- they should be detained, cited, arrested, whatever. They shouldn't be given a free pass. * I encourage the use of undercover police should work various hot spots and vicinities in the neighborhoods when they have reason to expect trouble. * The Zone 4 Police station should not have been shut, as it was shut. The closing sent a terrible message to many homeowners in a number of frail neighborhoods. * As a South Side resident, I stood with the fellow Pittsburghers from the neighborhoods in the west, to voice our protest to the closing of the Zone 4 station. I was there with them, even when that police station was not in MY Neighborhood. Many others from the South Side stood with them too as some of us realized that struggle was NOT a US vs. THEM situation. * I do think that Mayor Murphy choose to close the Zone 4 Police Station, (west end), because he could without too much grief from the citizens. Whereas if he had tried to close the Zone 3 Police Station (South Side), the opposition would have been much stronger and vocal against him. So, today, the Zone 3 is open because of political clout. That political clout has departed in time, however. Today, there are some in the area of the Zone 3 Police Station who would be happy to see the station move to other quarters. A parking problem has increased as more officers now work out of Zone 3 because the closure. * I think that the Zone 3 Police Station should be re-located to the site of South Vo Tech High School. That is not a school now. But, it is a public building that should see vibrant public uses. * After the Police move out of the present Zone 3 Police Station, then the EMS office might move back into the building, or EMS might want to set up a station at South Vo Tech as well. Plank about the Consent decree. * I will join with others to ask for accountability of the spendings from past efforts of the consent decree. How much did it cost? Where did the money come from? Where did the money go? Will we ever have closure and a final reporting and accounting of those efforts? Planks about the CPRB. * I have always supported the efforts of the Citizen Police Review Board. It was put into place by a vote of the people and democracy matters greatly in how we should govern. * The Citizen Police Review Board has never operated as it should due to the lack of support from within the city and from a number of other people in the system. City Council must share some of the blame for not being a supporter of the Citizen Police Review Board as there were not enough members of the board to even hold meetings for many months. City Council's appointment was not made, as it should have. I would always insist that all appointment from City Council be filled with this board. * I would like to advocate that the meetings of the Citizen Police Reveiw Board be put out on the cable TV as well as other high tech ways. Meetings can be taped and preserved for later download. Meeting minutes can be put onto the web. Planks about the police and recreation * I will work hard to re-start the PA Police Olympics. Links: * Police * Crime and punishment * Planks on Crime and Punishment from Mark Rauterkus category:Platform_Planks_from_Mark_Rauterkus